<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Duality by Talarc</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29758758">Duality</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talarc/pseuds/Talarc'>Talarc</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>All Comments Welcome, Friendship, Gen, Humor</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 23:35:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,054</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29758758</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talarc/pseuds/Talarc</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In which a girafarig and his chatty, aggravating tail have to set aside their differences to survive in a dark, dangerous forest.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Duality</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written for the inaugural Great Fic Writing Contest on r/pokemonfanfiction.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A single drop of water plunged from a pine needle and slammed silently into the ground below. A thin, pale mist hung in the air, blanketing the undergrowth and wrapping around the gnarled tree trunks like wispy tendrils. Murky and dark, only a handful of light beams piercing the canopy lit the forest floor, while the sweet scent of recent rain hung in the air.</p><p>With only the softest of clops, the girafarig threaded his way cautiously across the uneven ground, brushing a fern aside with his neck. The vast sea of trees stretched out before him, impenetrable and forbidding. There was no end in sight.</p><p>"Are we there yet?"</p><p>The girafarig sighed and glanced over his shoulder. "I appreciate that you don't exactly have the best view from back there," he said. "But surely you can see that we're still in this forest?"</p><p>The brown, bare face on the end of his tail looked back at him as best as he could. He gnashed his teeth before fixing the head with the maniacal grin that seemed permanently stuck to his face. "…I'm just asking."</p><p>"Well could you please stop?" The head turned forwards again. "This is the fourth time you've asked me that today."</p><p>"I can't see where we are or where we're going." The tail's voice was rough and sharp, puncturing the silence like a needle.</p><p>It felt like it was puncturing the head's ears too. "Yes, and if you keep distracting me, neither will I!" He was trying to be patient. It wasn't the tail's fault his brain was smaller.</p><p>"Where we going anyway?"</p><p>His memory wasn't the greatest either.</p><p>The head let out a sigh. "I told you this yesterday, and the day before that, and the…"</p><p>"Alright, I get it. You gonna tell me or what?"</p><p>"Could you not just dedicate that part of your brain you use for chattering to remembering what I say instead?" The head leant down, peering at the tangle of fern leaves and tree roots they were about to navigate.</p><p>"Sounds like too much effort," the tail replied. "C'mon, just tell me will you?"</p><p>The girafarig slammed his front hoof down slightly harder than necessary.</p><p>"Alright, alright," said the head. "Do you remember that prophecy the old man told us?"</p><p>"Nope!"</p><p>"…Of course, you don't." The head carefully guided them over a large root. "He said he had a vision that a legendary pokémon will descend from the heavens in a faraway place to aid a human child in saving us from a great catastrophe."</p><p>"Sounds kinda vague," said the tail. "You sure you can remember?"</p><p>"The old man's prophecies are always vague."</p><p>"Sounds more like 'lazy' to me. You sure he wasn't just talking out of his…"</p><p>"I can assure you it was his head, not his tail, that was doing the talking."</p><p>"Cool. So, what does that have to do with us?"</p><p>The girafarig brushed past another fern, its leaves still damp from the rain. The water clung to the fur on their neck as the head turned back again. "The old man wants us to seek out this human child and guide them on their journey. Once we've crossed this forest, we should arrive in the human town."</p><p>"You sure we'd be of any use?" the tail asked. "I mean, we have been lost in this forest for several days now."</p><p>"Ah, so you do remember?" The girafarig came to a stop as the head twisted around as fully as he could. "Then you'll recall the reason why we're lost in this forest is because you keep distracting me like this!"</p><p>"Whoa there! Cool it, bro!" The tail maintained his toothy grin. "Just making a joke. No harm done, eh?"</p><p>"…Apologies." The head turned forward, silently cursing himself for losing his temper. It wasn't the tail's fault his brain was smaller.</p><p>The girafarig started walking again. For several beautiful seconds, there was nothing but silence, the distant songs of birds, and the clop of their hooves on the forest floor.</p><p>"So, why did the old man choose us for this mission?"</p><p>The head bit his tongue to keep his thoughts spilling out. "Do you not remember, brother? We once spent time fighting for a human trainer a couple of years back."</p><p>"Oh, yeah." The tail swayed up and down lazily. "Now that you mention it, I do kinda remember that. What ever happened to them?"</p><p>"Oh, he asked us to predict what the winning lottery ticket would be," the head said, not looking back. "Got in trouble with the police, and that was the end of our partnership."</p><p>"Huh." The tail gazed out into the middle distance for a second. "I don't remember that at all."</p><p>"…You were asleep."</p><p>"Oh! Is that right?" The tail cackled. "I was worried I'd forgotten that as well!"</p><p>There was another couple of peaceful, blissful silence.</p><p>"…I'm hungry."</p><p>"You're what?" The head spun around again. "I ate more than enough for both of us this morning! How on Earth are you hungry?"</p><p>"Hey, they're my legs too!" the tail protested, twisting around and flapping his mouth. "You think you're the only one doing the walking?"</p><p>"Yes, I can feel our legs. I know that they're a little worn out, but I can assure you that we have plenty of energy to keep going. Listen: our stomach isn't even rumbling!"</p><p>"Aww, c'mon bro!" The tail grinned at him. "At least let me do something to kill the time!"</p><p>The head realised he was scowling and jerked back to the front. "Mother always said you were an idiot."</p><p>"…Which one?"</p><p>"The tail."</p><p>"Oh, yeah? Well, she's down at the rear end, so she's full of…" The tail suddenly froze, straining to stand upright.</p><p>The head could feel the change. "What is it?"</p><p>"Enemies," the tail muttered, jerking from side to side as he strained to peer through the gloom. "Quite small, but I think just one."</p><p>"Watch my back, brother," the head said.</p><p>"I always do, bro."</p><p>The head's ears could hear little more than the ambience in the forest, but he was starting to get signals from the tail. The bounding of paws was so soft that it was almost inaudible, even to the tail's incredible hearing. They were approaching from behind. They were getting closer, and quickly.</p><p>"A soulless one," the head mumbled. Their heart tightened. It was impossible to peer into the mind of a soulless one. Through telepathy, they appeared only as black gaps in reality. To have encountered such a terrifying foe here…</p><p>"I think there's a clearing up ahead!" the head called back. "I'll make a dash there."</p><p>"Got it."</p><p>With a sudden burst of speed, the girafarig surged forwards through the undergrowth. They nimbly sprang through a gap between two trees, sweeping ferns aside as they went. Behind them, they could finally hear the thuds of paws on the damp ground, followed by a loud howl.</p><p>As they cantered into the clearing, the girafarig came to a stop close to the centre. Plenty of space between here and the trees, and besides…</p><p>"We've got another one," the head said. A dark grey canine form was slinking out of the undergrowth on the far side of the clearing.</p><p>"Just great!" The tail gnashed his teeth. "They're closing in from behind too. What do we do?"</p><p>"I propose we stand our ground," the head replied.</p><p>"You sure?" The tail glanced back at him. "You know what we're dealing with, right?"</p><p>"Two soulless ones?" The head's mouth twitched as he looked back too. "As long as we work together, we'll be fine."</p><p>The soulless ones that had been tailing them emerged from the trees behind them. Together, the pair skulked around them, forming a circle with the girafarig in the centre.</p><p>"Any idea which way they're going to attack?" the tail asked.</p><p>"Hmm." The head gazed around, using both his and the tail's eyes. "It's hard to tell. I'm not used to reading body language like this."</p><p>"You sure we should stand our ground?" The tail bristled as he looked at the sharp teeth in the soulless one's mouth.</p><p>"Creatures of darkness are cowards," the head replied quietly, his own eyes not leaving the other soulless one. "They want us to run, to get tired, weaker." He shook his head. "If we want to make it, we must stand and fight here."</p><p>The soulless ones were starting to draw closer, growling and baring their teeth. The one behind seemed bolder, its eyes on the girafarig's hind legs rather than the tail.</p><p>"Bro?" The tail spoke without moving.</p><p>"Get ready," the head replied. An energy surged through them. The air quivered and a faint glow crept into their eyes.</p><p>The first soulless one sprang forwards, snarling and aimed at one of the back legs. His snarl turned into a yelp: in an instant, the tail had lunged and snapped his jaw shut mere inches from the attacker.</p><p>The girafarig lurched forwards and kicked out twice, slamming into the soulless one and sending it flying back. The head dipped low as the second enemy rushed them. Swinging out to the side, he smashed into the soulless one's flank and knocked it to the side.</p><p>"Run?" the tail asked, the hind legs twitching and jigging. The soulless ones staggered back up, winded but undaunted.</p><p>"Not yet." The head's eyes were fully glowing. He couldn't use their tremendous power on the soulless ones directly, but that wasn't a problem.</p><p>With a shout, he focused his gaze on a nearby tree, reaching invisibly out for it. His mind strained and pulsed, images of a giant, clawed hand closing around the trunk, gripping and squeezing, clouded his vision.</p><p>"They're coming, bro!" At the tail's shout, the girafarig suddenly bounded forwards.</p><p>As the soulless ones leapt after them, a loud crack pierced the air. The base of the tree trunk shattered, and countless wooden splinters crushed together in its place. Then came the roar. Leaves whistled through the air and thick branches scattered as the tree plunged towards the ground. It crashed with a subdued thud, leaves continuing to float down as the husk settled.</p><p>"No movement," the tail reported as they dashed away into the murky darkness.</p><p>"Good," the head murmured. His mind ached from the exertion, throbbing against his skull. It was taking all of his remaining focus to keep his eyes on the uneven ground. "We should…keeping moving. There could be more."</p><p>"I'll keep watch, bro!" The tail leaned from side to side. "Just focus on moving!"</p><p>They galloped in silence, weaving through dark, towering trees and jumping over thick, almost invisible roots. The further they moved from the site of the battle, the more the head allowed his mind to relax and the built-up energy to dissipate.</p><p>The tail had been scanning the forest around them, reaching out for any psychic gaps which might mark a pursuing soulless one, but there was nothing. There hadn't been anything for a while now. "Looks like it's all clear," he said, glancing forward at the head.</p><p>"Excellent work, brother." The head felt his neck sag slightly. It was only at times like this that the tail's sharp voice felt reassuring.</p><p>The girafarig slowed to a trot and then finally an amble. Far above, somewhere beyond the shadowy canopy, the sun had reached its zenith. The morning mist had been burnt off, leaving the scenery vaguely distinguishable. Just like yesterday, and the day before that, the head knew that this was when they needed to make the most progress.</p><p>They briefly stopped while the head regained his bearings. Then they set off once again, treating softly and carefully across the forest floor and occasionally passing beneath sun beams infiltrating the canopy.</p><p>"You sure it's okay to go slow?" the tail asked, swaying about and stretching to peer into the gloom. "Might be more nasties in this forest…"</p><p>"Oh, there are plenty," the head replied. He looked back at the tail. "But as long as we work together, we'll be able to fight them off."</p><p>"Alright then! Guess I'll put my faith in you then, bro!"</p><p>Then were a few seconds of peace, only the clopping of the girafarig's hooves filling the air. And then…</p><p>"Anyway, are we there yet?"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This fic would have worked a lot better with zweilous, but, you know, prompts be prompts!</p><p>I took some liberties when interpreting girafarig's Pokédex entry. The tail's brain is indeed smaller than the head's, but it's supposed to only be able to react to sensory stimuli and probably couldn't hold a conversation with the head!</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>